


The room where It happens (with a capital I)

by turtles_to_the_max



Category: Hamilton - Miranda
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-07-17
Updated: 2019-07-17
Packaged: 2020-06-30 06:44:27
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 881
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19847710
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/turtles_to_the_max/pseuds/turtles_to_the_max
Summary: Unlike Aaron Burr would have you believe, the first negotiation between Thomas Jefferson and Alexander Hamilton wasn't originally for political reasons.The real story behind it? Thomas Jefferson just wanted to ask his gay crush on a dinner date, and it all went downhill from there.





	The room where It happens (with a capital I)

**Author's Note:**

> so technically you wouldn't be able to know if it was James Madison or James Monroe he was talking to but i think you can figure it out

I am going to do this.

I am going to do this.

HOLY CRAP I AM ABOUT TO DO THIS AAAAAAAAAAAA

No. Breathe. I can do this.

This is a perfectly normal situation to be in.

A guy asking his crush out on a date. Totally normal.

A guy asking his gay crush out on a date. Still totally normal.

The first Secretary of State of the USA asking his gay crush, who also happens to be politically involved, out on a date, under pretence of political motives, and subtly enough so that the Secretary of the Treasury doesn't notice. This is normal. Yes. Completely ordinary. So typical that no one will even -

AAAAAAAA WHY AM I DOING THIS THIS WAS A TERRIBLE IDEA I'M GOING TO FAIL SO BADLY I SHOULD JUST RESIGN AND SELL MONTICELLO AND GET A FAKE NAME AND MOVE BACK TO FRANCE AAAAAAAAAA -

No. I'm safe. I'm fine. Nothing's happened yet. I have a plan, and it's going to go just fine - as long as Hamilton doesn't interfere. Which would be just like him, too, to ruin my plans and basically my life too, and make James hate me -

_ He knows.  _ Once, James was walking out of a meeting with me, and he said something that made me laugh a little too hard - and Hamilton just gave me this sly sideways glance which made my blood freeze. And now the way he looks at me whenever I'm with James...

Hah. Like he's any better. 

I met John Laurens when he was in Paris with me. Very bright, very patriotic, very courageous - and very, very obviously head-over-heels in love with some man named Alexander Hamilton. No idea what happened to him, since I'm pretty sure Hamilton's married now - and I never really understood what exactly Laurens was thinking, falling in love with Alexander Hamilton of all people - but I can't really be bothered to care right now. I have other relationship issues on my mind.

For example, that I'm about to ask my gay crush of five years out on a date. 

I can do this. It'll be fine. 

Okay. Let's go. 

I take a deep breath and walk out the door -

Is there anything in my teeth?

Crap. I glance in a window; there's nothing in my teeth, my face is clean and my hair does not look terrible. Good enough. I can probably pass as a functioning human being for the moment.

Scanning for other reasons to delay. Negative.

And then James rounds the corner, and my heart goes into the flutter-hop-skip routine it always does when I see him, amplified because of what I'm about to do. What if I mess everything up and he rejects me and he never speaks to me again and -

"Evening, Thomas."

I start at the sound of his voice. It's going to be fine, just act normal and he'll never know... "Hi, James."  Of course, it has to come out more croakily than normal.  Somehow, he still smiles at me and I sigh with relief.  Don't mess this up or he'll never look at you like that again. "Actually, I... I wanted to talk to you."

He looks at me curiously, and my heart flutters. Time for the important part. Not too obvious, not too subtle, because I still don't know if he likes me back or not... 

I take a deep breath. Here we go. "So - with all the drama about assuming states' debts and me being Secretary of State and all, there hasn't really been time to really talk about anything much. Should we maybe try to discuss it in private - over dinner sometime?" 

So far, so good - he's still smiling a little. It's a complete lie, of course, but _Hi James, I'm in love with you and will you go out with me?_ was out of the question and I needed an excuse. "With Hamilton -"

I was going to say 'with Hamilton poking his nose in everywhere, it would be nice to talk about things alone for once', but James completely misinterprets it.

His face lights up, and my heart skips painfully again. "Yes - that would be perfect! We could work out a compromise with him, maybe support his financial system in exchange for getting the capital moved to Virginia - I mean, wouldn't it be nice to work a little closer to home?"

No. No. No. My chance, ruined, but I can't go back on it now. Or ever. Goodbye, James, I guess you'll never know how I really feel about you...

"Actually, it would," I reply, starting to break down internally. I'm barely even listening while he goes on about the Potomac and Washington and Hamilton, and damn it, he's so cute when he goes on about politics and he'll never, ever know...

"...and that would be good. What do you think?"

"What? Oh, yeah... sounds good... sorry, I think I have to go now." One minute more of this and I think I'll break down.

As I turn away from him and stride down the hall, my mind can only go around and around and around four points:

1\. That did _not_ go according to plan.

2\. At least he doesn't hate me.

3\. Yet.

4\. This is all Hamilton's fault, isn't it?


End file.
